Monthly Newsletter Read about our news and latest updates. Hi there, One of the hottest summers on record is officially behind us, although Vienna is still enjoying plenty of sunshine and mild temperatures. As we prepare for the beginning of another busy semester, we’d like to take this opportunity to share some news, welcome new members to our team, and tell you about upcoming activities and events. We’re delighted to welcome two new members to the VAS team: Astou Marasz

We are proud to announce the speakers for our 2026 Winter Lecture Series including lectures by scholars based in Vienna who are working in the field of animal studies: 5 November 2026, “Animated Wor(l)ds” by Eva Spiegelhofer and Dr. Elizabeth Tavella (WU, 17:30-19:30). 25 November 2026, “Designing Cities with Animals: The Promise and Challenges of Animal-Aided Design” by Prof. Dr. Thomas E. Hauck (TU, 17:30-19:30). 16 December 2026, VAS End of Year Social (TBA) 27 January 202

As of September 2026 VAS Founding Member Arianna Ferrari will be coordinating the EU-funded ALT-PROACT - ALTernative PROteins: Awareness, Co-creation, Transformation. The project is investigating what citizens understand about alternative proteins as well as how they can be better informed about them and involved in public dialogue and education on the matter. This will be achieved through conducting multi-lingual surveys; engaging in a range of workshops, forums, and storyte

On March 2 nd , Spanish philosopher Susana Monsó gave a fascinating talk at the Vetmeduni about her book “ Playing Possum: How Animals Understand Death ,” whose German translation “ Das Schweigen der Schimpansen: Wie Tiere den Tod verstehen ” was recently awarded Austria's 2026 “Science Book of the Year ” in the category of science/technology by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Women, Science and Research. [1] Drawing on the fields of comparative thanatology and the philos

In her recent talk ‘ Animal Futures in an Economy of Cultivated Meat ,’ Dr. Arianna Ferrari, ethicist and philosopher of science and technology from the Centre for Innovation Systems and Policy, laid bare the complexities and challenges surrounding the development, production, and sale of cultivated meat (also known as ‘cellular meat’ or ‘lab-grown meat’). With a published monograph and numerous articles on the topic, Vienna Animal Studies could not have asked for a more qua

Law scholar Prof. Dr. Margot Michel, 3R Coordinator Dr. Paulin Jirkof (both University of Zurich) and Dr. Samuel Camenzind from the Vienna Animals Studies Group (APART-GSK fellow, University of Vienna) have joined forces to establish a new interdisciplinary dialogue format at the University of Zürich. The overall aim of this initiative is to build a lasting dialogue at the University of Zürich – and beyond – in order to advance the implementation of the 3Rs (Replace, Reduce,